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"The Adventures of Superpup" (1958) was meant to be a children's show with little people in dog costumes. Billy Curtis, star of "Superman and the Molemen," played Bark Bent who was a reporter
working for Perry Bite. When the evil Professor Sheepdip kidnaps Pamela Poodle, it's our hero to the rescue. Faster than the speediest jet More powerful than the mightiest rocket Able to fly around the world faster than you can say "Superpup" Yes it's Superpup, and only you and I know that Superpup is really Bark Bent, star reporter for the Daily Bugle.
After production ceased on the Adventures of Superman television series, Whitney Ellsworth, who had co-produced the original show, hoped to continue his success with a new follow-up series. The problem was deciding just what that new series would be. "The Adventures of Superboy" attempted to extend the Superman series with the same spin-off that had worked so well in the comic books. Whitney Ellsworth produced and co-wrote the half-hour pilot episode, which is a heart-warming tale of Superboy foiling some jewel thieves who have targeted Smallville, and restoring a son's faith in his father at the same time. It stars John Rockwell in the dual role of Superboy and Clark Kent, and the keen-eyed viewer will note that Rockwell wears one of the same costumes which George Reeves wore in the earlier Superman series.
Ellsworth prepared 12 additional Superboy scripts which remain unfilmed.
When the planet Krypton was destroyed in a cosmic holocost that claimed it's great civilization, Kal-El (known to Earth as Superman) was believed to be the only survivor - until now...
Safely hidden in the void of inner-space is the Kryptonian city of Argo - saved by the scientist Zaltar, and powered by the magical Omegahedron. But now the city's vital power source has been lost, and only one courageous person can retrieve it! Her name is Kara, the teenage cousin of Superman. On Earth she is known as Supergirl (Helen Slater). Standing in her way is the evil sorceress Selena who has taken control of the fantastic power source. With her now super-powered black magic, the villainess is bent upon nothing less the world domination! Can Supergirl retrieve the Omegahedron before it is to late.
Helen Slater deserves credit for playing the heroine with commendable conviction, and for making her secret identity (as a mousy schoolgirl) more convincing than the old Clark Kent routine ever was.
In 1988, executive producers Alexander and Ilya Salkind, the same father-and-son team responsible for Superman the Movie, brought Superboy to television in a show faithful to the spirit of both the Superman and Superboy comic books. "Superboy" the series was based on the teenage Clark Kent attending college while trying to sweep Lana Lang off her feet. Though you might think it is similar to the current Superman incarnation "Smallville" but this series also followed the teenage years of Superman himself (Dubbed at this point "The Boy of Steel")
Newton didn't last very long in the role. Whether it was the hefty pay raise he sought, or the embarrassment to the producers courtesy of the speeding tickets he racked up around Orlando, Newton was out of the tights soon after season one wrapped.
Click on this banner to sign the petition for the release of seasons 2, 3 and 4 of the Adventures of Superboy on DVD.
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After 26 episodes,The name of the series was changed to "The Adventures of Superboy" and Newton was replaced with newcomer Gerard Christopher. Gerard was a student of Superman lore who had clearly studied the performances of preceding Superman actors - he quickly became a fan-favorite as Superboy.
As a result of his own enthusiasm and prior experience, he eventually became both a producer and a contributing writer to the show. His fan background brought something extra to the series and it consistently placed among the top ten syndicated programs.
The part of Lex Luthor was also recast, scripts continued to improve, and the effects began to rival those found in the feature films. When Superboy graduated from Shuster University and took on a full-time job with Lana at the Bureau for Extranormal Matters, the show developed into a succession of well-crafted and authentic Superman stories.
The show was cancelled following a lawsuit filed by Warner Brothers (the company that owned the Superman "family" of characters) against the Salkinds who had leased the rights in the early 1970s and made the film series. WB claimed that they had first shot at making a series (the show was distributed through Viacom). The case was settled and the rights officially reverted to WB and the show has not been rerun in North America since.
Before the legend...before the icon...there was a teenager named Clark Kent (Tom Welling, Cheaper by the Dozen.) Between the boy he thought he was and the man he is destined to become are the stories of Smallville. Someday, he'll master his powers and understand his true calling. Now beginning its fourth season on The WB, this new interpretation of the enduring Superman mythology and its classic characters blends realism and adventure into an exciting action series. Fourteen years ago, a meteor shower burst from the heavens, raining destruction on the unsuspecting citizens of Smallville, Kansas. The intervening years have left the town's inhabitants with scars and secrets. From the ashes of tragedy, Clark Kent has grown into an awkward teen. While adolescence always brings its challenges, Clark's transition from boyhood to manhood has been particularly difficult. He has struggled to come to grips with his emerging superpowers - and the effects of various forms of kryptonite - while battling the strange things that have plagued this idyllic Midwest hamlet since the meteor shower.
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Return to Superman
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Superman created by Jerry Seigel & Joe Shuster.
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